SportFootballArgentina football teamLionel Scaloni was quizzed on the tension between Argentina and England due to the Falkland Islands ahead of the World Cup semi-final in Atalanta06:00, 15 Jul 2026Argentina boss Lionel Scaloni has urged his side to focus on football as the historic hostility with England over the Falkland Islands threatens to spill over into Wednesday's World Cup semi-final.‌Scaloni does not appear to be interested in politics, though there still appears to be tension among both sets of supporters ahead of a hotly-anticipated last-four clash.‌He said in his pre-match press conference on Tuesday at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium: "The reality is that this is a football match. I can't mix things up, especially out of respect for what happened so many years ago.‌"It was a very sad period in our history, and there isn't much we can do about it, that's the reality. "It is a football match. There's no getting around that. Things are happening elsewhere in the world, and we criticise the existence of war, so for me to start saying this is anything more than a football match... it seems crazy to me. "We certainly remember those people, of course. But it is a football match, we shouldn't confuse the two."The winner of the semi-final will meet Spain in New Jersey this weekend as Argentina bid to retain their crown.England, of course, have not won the World Cup since 1966 and this would also be their first final since they lifted the trophy on home soil.‌Argentina have won all six of their matches at this World Cup, however, there has still been complaints over their style and performances.Scaloni hit back at critics, stating: "The team isn't playing as bad as people say. We must have done something right to reach this stage.‌"I'm grateful to the players. They've led us to three titles and now another semi-final. We're just one step away, and we're going to give it our all to get there.“I don’t care how we’re feeling. We’re in a World Cup semifinal. A month and a half ago, I would’ve signed up for this without hesitation. We’re incredibly excited, so it doesn’t matter whether we’re tired or not. The goal was to get here by any means necessary, and here we are."We’re doing well and we’re very excited. We’ve been talking about the things we believe we need to improve. We’re going up against a great team, and we hope we’re the ones who make it through.”Article continues belowEngland have not met Argentina competitively since the 2002 World Cup. The did beat the South American nation in their last meeting back in 2005 when they won a friendly 3-2 in Geneva.Get the latest World Cup news straight to your inbox by signing up to our Make Football Great Again newsletter now!Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.Choose Daily Mirror as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.‌WhatsAppLionel ScaloniEngland football teamThe FalklandsArgentina national football teamArgentina football teamFIFA World CupWorld Cup 2026